Family heirloom, then turned into a demon girl

Chapter 77 EP: Prideful Heart

Mephistopheles completely disappeared in front of Nero.

"It's really hard to resist a beating." Nero couldn't help but complain, reaching out to pick up what it left behind.

As a demon, Mephistopheles left behind two objects after his disappearance, corresponding to his two true identities. It was at this moment that Nero finally realized that this demon was also an angel - the archangel whose real name was "Samael".

The Spirit of Nothingness, the Blind God, the Angel of Trials, the Liar—these are all identities of the being called Samael. One of this angel's jobs is to collect the souls of the dead, making him one of the original gods of death.

Blindness—the darkness of nothingness; death—the eternal end. These are all aspects of the so-called "nothingness." The very existence of this angel tempts humanity to fall into nothingness, into the abyss of neither good nor evil.

Falling into nothingness due to the fulfillment of a wish is the original sin of laziness. After absorbing Samael's magic power, Nero felt that his second crystal of the original sin stone seemed to be gradually taking shape.

The two things it left behind were a bowler hat named "Mephistopheles" and a cane named "Samael".

The hat, a relic of the phantom, possessed no real power. Its only effect was to magically transform a matching tuxedo upon wearing it. However, since Nero's original clothing had been destroyed, it was a boon, so she immediately put it on. The resulting garment was surprisingly human-like, automatically tying Nero's ponytail and leaving a prismatic opening beneath the tuxedo's scarf—a perfect spot to expose Nero's chest, allowing her to easily access her magical tools.

That staff, the very weapon Mephistopheles wielded, contained a rapier. The rapier was useless to Nero, but in his hands, the weapon took on a new form—perhaps due to Samael's role as the god of death. This humble, jet-black staff could unfold into a long staff, its tip a magically materialized blade. Yes, it could become a scythe.

Nero unfolded the scythe, wearing a tuxedo, a top hat and a mask, swung the sword to tear open the chaotic space, and jumped out.

According to Mephistopheles' final words, it seemed to be the core of the singularity's existence. Now that it had dissipated, the singularity's time was running out. Nero still had one final thing he wanted to accomplish.

The Sin Stone: Pride is only one step away from being fully formed.

Nero could sense that the final step existed outside this chaos.

"The Holy Grail!" Ritsuka's surprised voice reached Nero's ears.

It seems that the beating was not severe enough, Mephisto actually still had the energy to give Ritsuka a gift - Nero reflected deeply on his own behavior, swung his scythe under the morning sun, and collided heavily with the long sword in the hands of the orange-haired heroic spirit.

"Oedipus?" she asked.

"That's right." The other party replied.

After a brief greeting, Nero shook off the sword, swung the sickle, and the blade turned into a blue crescent moon, wrapping Oedipus in it.

"Why don't you tell me your intentions first?" Oedipus blocked with his sword and kicked the handle of the sickle.

"To fulfill someone's last words, to take away your power, and..."

Nero, in turn, hooked Oedipus's sword with his sickle and dragged it towards him, with magic burning in his pupils: "Also, revenge for a certain girl!"

The culprit who created the singularity is dead, but the culprit who plunged the town into various disasters, corrupting the townspeople with demonic energy and leading to tragedy, remains at large. Revenge on Apollo, who tore apart his family? Sure. But dragging innocent people into the conflict, causing even more destruction—how is this any different from Apollo's actions?

Even if the Sphinx had not asked him to do so, Nero would have to wake Oedipus up and end his dream of revenge!

Oedipus drew his sword and blocked Nero's phantom sword. Then he heard Nero say, "Didn't the legend say you accepted your crime and the punishment? Why do you still persist in your wrongdoing?"

"Accept?" Oedipus replied with disdain, "How could I possibly accept that? What did Apollo say when I first went to the temple to ask for the oracle? I asked him if he was my parents' biological son, and he said I was destined to kill my father and marry my mother!
"There's no such thing as an unchangeable fate! Ultimately, it's all these arrogant gods pulling the strings behind the scenes!"

"Really?" Nero sneered and asked him, "If Apollo had answered your question directly, wouldn't all this have happened?"

Nero spun the hilt of his sword and struck Oedipus’s sword with the tip of his sickle, deflecting it. He then reached forward and hooked his neck: “You think you can change your fate—but fate is always determined by human choices!

Oedipus ducked to avoid the hook, but was then hit by Nero's words: "No matter what answer Apollo gives you, you will eventually choose to leave Corinth and explore the truth - this is your own destiny!"

Yes, prophecies aren't scary, and neither is the truth. What's scary is knowing the prophecy and the truth, yet choosing to turn a blind eye, a deaf ear, and feign ignorance. Oedipus's own arrogance was the very judge of his fate.

If Oedipus was truly as powerful as he imagined, why did he flee Corinth, where his adoptive parents lived, after receiving the oracle from Apollo? Why didn't he trust himself to avoid such an act and openly challenge the prophecy?
Because he was afraid. To hide his fear, he chose to confront it with arrogance.

Self-promotion that is inconsistent with the facts is arrogance.

Finally, Nero and Oedipus passed each other, and the sickle in Nero's hand pierced his chest, with a living heart on the top.

"Ms. Nero! Well done!" Ritsuka applauded and cheered.

"Senior, the singularity is about to dissipate, and we must prepare to return!"

"Ah...ok!"

Countless golden lights rose from the depths of the earth, and the golden buildings began to gradually disappear. Not far away, Uesugi Kenshin and Izumo Okuni rode in chariots, waving their hands and rushing towards them, offering a final greeting.

"……you're right."

Nero looked at Oedipus, who was looking dejected and fading away. He said, "I am truly... arrogant."

After he disappeared into golden particles, Nero removed the heart from the top of the sickle.

Crush it in one handful.

　FGO ends ~ a new story begins
　　
　
(End of this chapter)